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Big Ten Championship Game Named 2011-12 Best New Sports Event

The inaugural Big Ten Football Championship Game was honored with a 2012 SportsTravel Award for "Best New Sports Event" at the SportsTravel Awards Luncheon, held Thursday in Detroit. The inaugural game was held at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on Dec. 3, 2011, with more than 64,000 fans in attendance. The weekend also included the Big Ten Fan Fest presented by Dr Pepper, the Georgia Street Tailgate Party and several youth initiatives. Indianapolis will continue to host the event through at least 2015. The City of Indianapolis was also honored for hosting Super Bowl XLVI on Feb. 5, 2012, which won the "Best Professional Single-Sport Event" category.

"The SportsTravel Awards are a tremendous honor for Indianapolis and the state of Indiana," said Allison Melangton, president of Indiana Sports Corp. "There are thousands of great partners, committee members and volunteers who come together and make these events successful. It is a privilege to work with long-time partners in the NFL and Big Ten Conference to create monumental events. We are excited to continue hosting the Big Ten Football Championship Game through 2015, and pursue another Super Bowl in 2018."

The SportsTravel Awards celebrate the best in sports-event management and production each year. The awards recognize excellence in amateur, collegiate and professional sporting events.